Can I get a Remote Car Starter on A Manual Transmission?

We are asked this question all the time. The short answer is: Sure you can! But I am confident that you want more information than that! Read on.

A Little History

We used to stay away from remote car starters on manual shift cars. Back in the day, there were all kinds of methods to do a remote start in a standard shift. One manufacturer had little lights that you had to line up to ensure that the shifter was in the neutral position. What a joke that was. There was nothing out there that appeared to be both safe and reliable.

Today, installations in standard transmission vehicles make up about 20% of our car starter business. So what changed our minds? A couple of years ago, our remote starter vendor came up with a very easy to use, reliable and safe method. That method has been improved upon and today, is very foolproof.

What’s the Big Deal?

There are several issues with installing a remote starter in stick shift. First of all, you must have the emergency brake on. Second, the vehicle must be in neutral. If either one of these conditions does not exist during the remote start sequence, the result could be deadly. The car could buck forward and roll down a hill. Not good.

So in order to make a remote starter function safely, it needs to be able to monitor both the E brake and the shifter.

How do we do that?

The first one is simple. Most vehicles have a wire attached to the emergency brake. If the brake is not engaged, the remote car starter realizes this and will not let the vehicle start. But what about the shifter?

In most cases, the shifter is a manual device and there is not a wire that can tell the remote starter without a doubt that the car is in neutral.

Our vendor has a very effective way of doing this. First of all, when you are ready to get out of your car, you need to engage the emergency brake. You do this before you shut off the car. This is a sign to the remote car starter to keep the car running even after you turn off the key. After that, you press the start button on your remote car starter remote. Next you actually turn off the key and the car stays running. Now you make sure that the car is in neutral and get out of the car. When you close the door, the car shuts off. Why go through all of that? If the car is still running when you get out of the car, obviously it had to be in neutral.

When you want to remote start your vehicle, simply press the button on the remote. As long as no-one has opened the door since you exited, the car will start. If the door was opened, the car will not start. This is a safety feature to ensure that no one has gotten in the vehicle and put it back in gear. Opening the door interrupts the specific series of events that needs to happen in order to start the car remotely. Once the door is opened, you need to repeat the process outlined above before remote car starting.

We feel that this is a very easy, effective and safe way to add a remote car starter to your vehicle. Please stop in anytime for a free estimate on a remote car starter for your standard shift vehicle.

Comments

I have 2003 Subaru Legacy 5 speed and would love an automatic starter, but I have to push the clutch to the floor in order to start the car even if the gearshift is in neutral. Can a remote car starter be installed in this vehicle?

I own a 5 speed honda civic, and there are a few ways to have it done. First off im a 12 volt installer n-e-ways DEI makes a remote start for stick shift cars, and the other ways is to custom fab a ring around the stick shift and make sure it grounds out if in gear.

Jon, I am usually very diplomatic with my comments… please look at my site and you will see… BUT… in the interest of making people safe, I will categorically say that a custom fabricated ring around the stick shift, or infrared, or magic eyes or anything like that is TOTALLY UNSAFE! If your installer recommends this, RUN FOR THE DOOR!… These are late 80’s and 90’s solutions.. We did not offer installations on remote starters during these times because the solution was unsafe.. The solution that Compustar offers is sensible and logical… It doesn’t rely on something mechanical that can fail.. and lead to a nightmare… DO IT RIGHT OR DONT DO IT! Sorry Jon..

“The solution that Compustar offers is sensible and logical… It doesn’t rely on something mechanical that can fail.. and lead to a nightmare…”

I am a muscle car guy. Never owned anything else. The problem with this statement is that it may not rely on mechanical parts that yes, have a chance to fail. However it relys on an electronic system that eventually WILL fail. There’s no way around that. Nothing electronic in this world is made to last.

All things being equal, I would take the solution that Compustar offers (installed properly) over the old school mechanical solutions every single time. My point had nothing to do with muscle cars. Just that the current solution offered by Compustar is far far superior to the old school mechanical devices. I stand behind my statement.

True that everything will fail at some point, but it sounds like if the electronic version (the Compustar one) fails, the car won’t start. Whereas if the mechanical version (grounding ring) fails, the car would start (since it wouldn’t think it’s in gear).

Dylan is thinking it through properly. Train air brakes work similarly – pressure needs to be high/on for the brakes to be OFF. Therefore, if there is an air leak, the brakes come on. I forget who came up with – Westinghouse? Some famous engineer.

Also, it sounds like this new method requires a few things to be “true” for the car to start – multiple requirements in series.

My new Focus’s manual states the silly Ford MyKey might not work with aftermarket starters, but they mention a possible workaround. I don’t fully understand if Ford MyKey is useful at all, need to look into this issue more. they ought to offer a remote starter darnitall. The car tells me when to shift, so they already have a sensor. If the argument is that sensor could fail, how is that any different than whatever senses an auto tranny is in park… If integrated into the car, they could even turn the car off if the computer senses the car moving after being remotely started.

I think Eric’s point was if the Compustar remote starter should fail, it will prevent the vehicle from starting with the remote starter (any potential dangers of starting it with the key are present regardless of a remote starter even being installed), whereas if the ring switch should fail it would still allow the engine to be started with the remote starter (say it was in gear and no contact was made between the ground and ring.) I may not fully understand your system, so I was wondering if it was necessary to have the driver press the remote starter button before removing the key from the ignition, or could you set it up so the parking break signal is the only input needed from the driver to inform the remote starter to enable and keep the engine running until the driver exits and closes the door. It just seems somewhat redundant and a slight personal inconvenience to signal the remote starter with the parking break, then fumble with the transponder on your keychain to press the button and signal it again, and then remove your keys. Again I may be overlooking some safety aspect here (redundancy is the key to safety of course,) but it seems to me it would be just as safe if you used the parking break to signal the remote starter to enable instead of a combination of the parking break and the button push.

Right, the remote starter would be enabled everytime you left your car. And your parking brake should only be on when you’re parked, which is why it would be a good indicator to enable the remote start, unless of course you want to manually enable it at specific times only. My point was how I can’t see that this adds to the safety, it just seems to me like it allows you to choose whether or not your remote start is enabled when you exit the car.

Need a secondary safety mechanism – what if the parking brake is on but they left it in gear? I think the gear and brake should be checked, or the method that the person has to be out of the car when they turn it off or whatever, to ensure it is in neutral.

Hi I bought one today under advice from a professional, but upon reading the manual I realized it says ” not for convertibles or soft tops” well my car is a vw 88 cabriolet.! Also my car is a manual and he installed it as an automatic because my emergency brake signal is ” sticky” and will sometimes flicker when not engaged- the brake works though….should I be worried?

I have no way of knowing the specific details of this install. Perhaps they took other precautions. Perhaps the brand that you had installed has different options that allow for safe installations in these cases (though I’ve never heard of anything like that)… That being said, based on the information that you provided, it sounds to be very unsafe. This would never be the way that we would do it. And I’m a little embarrassed that someone in my industry would do this. Gives us all a bit of a black eye. What you need to do is go back to that shop and ask them to explain exactly how this vehicle is safe and how ALL of the required safety functions perform properly. Be nice but firm and don’t take “well it just is” for an answer…. Make them show you. If they cannot, I would politely ask for them to take it out and refund all of your money. Injuring someone because of this potentially bad install would be horrible to live with.

I have a 2007 G6 and I was wondering about a automatic starter. With my car it has to be in reverse to remove the key so netural and e brake isnt an option. I figure the answer to my ? is no the automatic starter wouldn’t work but I could be wrong so will it work?

That is normal for that vehicle. There should be an electronic switch to allow the key to be released when the shifter is in reverse. We should be able to recreate that scenario once the system has activated reservation mode by setting the E-brake. It would require some additional diagnostic and wiring, but it can be done.

I cannot see any reason why it would not work in your vehicle. We feel that they are very safe however we would always tell you not to do anything unless you are 100% comfortable with it. Stop in with the vehicle when you have a chance and we can go over the unit in detail and answer any questions.

I have a turbo timer installed on my 2010 Evo X. How will the “sequence” work, as when I get out of my car and shut the door my vehicle is supposed to stay on until the timer counts down. Can you use the remote start in conjunction with a turbo timer? I don’t see how it can work but if it can, I’d definitely be interested in it.

That is a great question. I’m not sure if this would be possible, but we would be happy to look into it. Stop in with your vehicle and let us take a look at exactly how your turbo timer operates and perhaps we can make this work. Thanks for the great comment and question.

I have a toyota vitz 2005, I’m from Venezuela, have a viper 5901, my car is with manual transmissions, in my country there is no installation for this type of alarm. please to help me with this function. where to install the neutral safety imput?

You can install a remote starter on a carbureted vehicle by installing a door unlock motor and ball chain on the throttle just as if you were adding a cruise control, then program a point to pulse this output before crank, and again at the start acknowledgement point.

We used to do this all the time. My company (Cotronix) designed and sold the ComfyCar back in the 80’s.

Mobile Edge does not support or endorse this process. Not saying that it has not and cannot work. It is not something that we would be comfortable putting our name on. If we cannot feel comfortable that the vehicle will start all the time, we will not take the job.

Will the car begin to act funny later down the road(in a couple of years)? I would love to do this to my bf’s new car but if it malfunctions…. Well, I’ll have to think of another Christmas gift. Lol. (0.0)

Have you heard back from people that have had an auto starter installed into their manual?

I drive a manual 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse and installed a Bulldog remote starter in it 3 years ago. The install took all day but it has worked as advertised since I put it in.

The only problem is that the range is not the best as I simply have a 10 gauge wire running from the switched switch to the back of the car. Do you guys sell anything antenna or otherwise that I could incorporate with this install that would give me better range? Perhaps a remote with an antenna?

It would be impossible to tell what is wrong with your installation without taking a look at it. It would be our opinion that you should take this back to your installer and explain what happened. They should be able to assess your problem.

I drive a 2005 Civic Hybrid in Oregon. Obviously, I cannot make it to your shop for installation and I cannot find a local shop who is willing to do an install. Can you provide instructions to safely install remote start? With the car being a hybrid, the engine is usually ‘off when I take the key out of the ignition. Would that affect the shutdown and subsequent restart of the engine?
Thank you for having a safe way to install remote start on standard transmission cars. Now I will not settle for anything less than your setup.

Jake…. First of all, thanks for all the kind words… we try! I wish that I could support you with some installation help.. Unfortunately we do not offer installation advice, particularly for remote car starters. There is way too much liability involved. If we were offering advice, we would be somewhat responsible should a mistake happen… We have a tremendous amount of checks and balances involved when we do these jobs to ensure safety. What you really need to do is to find a quality shop that does excellent work. You may gladly put them in touch with us if they are unfamiliar with the process that we use. Currently, we recommend Compustar remote starters and you can use their dealer locator at http://www.compustar.com

Yes, you can, but in order to do it the most secure way, you would need an additional part. The part would detect any motion with the vehicle. We require this on any “convertible” vehicles with standard trans that we would do a remote starter install on.

I drive a 2011 mazda 3, i had a remote starter put in a couple weeks ago and it seems to only work 1/10 times I try.

It says in this article that once you get out, and if someone opens the door again, the starter wont work.

question one, does the ebreak need to be at a certain point for it to activate because i do this constantly and my starter still wont work, (my car either turns off as soon i take my keys out, or the starter just doesnt start my car.

and

question two, i have two kids, so when i get out of my car and shut the door, i need to open my two back passenger doors to get my kids out, does this disarm the starter too?

Jaime, unfortunately it is VERY difficult for me to offer any guidance on this since I do not know how it was installed, what brand, model, etc… I would HIGHLY recommend that you go back to the installing dealer and have them check it out ASAP. Not something that you want to wait on and the dealer that put it in should feel the same way… When done correctly, these devices are safe but it sounds like you may have something out of whack! Good luck.

If I remote start my manual transmission car will the engine shut off when I get to my car and open the door to get in? You say the system shuts off if the door is opened so does it shut off even when I’m getting in the car after I’ve remote started it?

Great question… No.. it will not shut off. When putting the vehicle into reservation mode, the unit is looking for the door to open and close at which time the vehicle shuts off. When remote starting the vehicle, this does not come into play and the vehicle will stay running. You get in, put the key in the ignition and turn it to the “on” position. Tap the brake and drie away. It’s that simple.

Tim, I do not personally know anyone in the area to recommend. As for a brand… At this time, Mobile Edge is extremely happy with the Compustar brand. We have been selling Compustar for several years and they are a top notch company. Go to http://www.Compustar.com and use their dealer locator to find some dealers in your area. VISIT THEM! Talk to the managers/owners… DO NOT BASE YOUR DECISION ON PRICE!!! (Sorry… I get passionate about this stuff)… Go to the place that impresses you… the place that you feel confident will do the job right. When buying a remote starter it is never a good idea to trust your business to the lowest bidder…

I have a 04 Saturn Ion. I recently have had problems with it starting and everything I have read say that this car has a manufacture glitch that some anti-theft gell in the ignition freezes and it wont start in the cold. Some people say that there is no way to fix it and others say that installinga remote start will bypass that anti-theft issue and allow the car to start everytime. But it is a manual and I dont think my E break works well because the car always slides on a hill even when it is in 1st gear. Do you think a remote start would fix it and is a remote start even possible? Thanks!

I have never heard of this situation. I do not agree that a remote starter should be used to bypass an existing problem. If there is an underlying problem, that should be fixed before installing a remote car starter.

I cannot comment on the Viper system since we do not sell that brand. I can tell you that we can install a Compustar in your vehicle. Just make sure that you go to a specialist retailer to purchase and install your starter.

We would need a LOT more information to answer this question… Please consult with the company that installed it for assistance. If that was us, please provide an invoice number and we can set up a troubleshoot appointment.

I often park my manual on very steep hills, so as a precaution I always put the car in 1st and put on the parking brake. However, I will not always want to use the remote start when I activate the parking brake, and I usually put the car in 1st when using the parking brake. Is there any way to install an alternate activation method such as a button so I could use the parking brake in conjunction with 1st gear when I park?

Activating the parking brake does not mean that you have to use the remote starter. Engaging the parking break is one of the things that you NEED to do in order to use the remote starter. I hope that makes sense. If I am understanding your question, you do not need a special switch.

HOWEVER, it is important to understand that if the vehicle is in 1st gear, the remote starter will obviously not function.

My mom have a remote start that she bought for her Honda Accord 2000 range. it was a automatic but she never got it installed. My honda accord is a 2009 and stick shift. Is there a possibility to use that one

I’m in the market for a new car and I’m considering the Subaru BRZ limited Manual transmission. Compared to the premium model and the sister car Scion FR-S, the subaru brz limited has both keyless entry and push to start. Is it possible, and what are the risks to get a remote start for a push to start ignition? This may be my deciding factor which model to choose, so I appreciate your comments.

Chris, we only sell our remote starters installed. That said, we sell the Compustar brand at our store and have nothing but excellent things to say about the company. You should find a Compustar dealer in your area and have them show you some models.

Hi there. I bought a 2000 Toyota Echo in the summer time that came with Command Start, however, seeing as it was summer, I didn’t use it right away. When I bought the car, he showed me how to use the Command Start and I saw that it worked. Now, unfortunately, no matter what I try, I cannot take the keys out of the ignition and leave the engine running (as you explained and as the previous owner demonstrated). I’ve tried leaving it in neutral and with the E-brake on. I’ve tried that with a combination of the clutch/brakes and all together. Nothing works. Can you please let me know how to accomplish this?

i have a 04 maxima manual transmission with a viper remote starter installed. it starts even if i leave it in gear(caused many problems). i just want to know if theres a way to make it only start when in neutral. if so, how?

I do not sell that brand, but you absolutely have a problem with your installation or the product. It is a serious problem. You should discontinue using the remote starter entirely until you can get the vehicle to a Viper dealer for assistance.

I have a 1998 Volkswagen Jetta GLX with a 5 speed standard transaxle. In my car, the alarm goes off if there is an attempt to start the car while the alarm is armed. The alarm arms automatically when the doors are locked. Is it possible to install a remote start without setting off the alarm when it is used?

Just wondering, I have a 2000 Chevy Cavalier Z24 however I was wondering, if the doors don’t have automatic locks on them, how can the system tell when the door closes?? I don’t have automatic door locks and would still like to get one of these for my car.

I have an 2008 Honda Accord 5 Spd. My issue with mine is if i go into my trunk for any reason after i have shut off my car , my auto start will not work. Is this a safety feature aswell as the doors being open after the fact? or is this an installation problem?

My wife has a 2008 Jeep Wrangler. I have had many discussions with installers on this subject. The one issue always is what if we have taken the doors off. I don’t really need remote start in this situation however how do I turn the car off if I can’t shut the door?

Actually a great question… Understand that some shops may handle this differently that we do. The way that we would install it (for safety reasons) would eliminate the possibility of using the remote starter while the doors were off. As you said, it needs to see the opening and closing of the door in order to get into reservation mode. Without that happening it would not be able to be put into reservation mode, thus not allowing the remote starter to function.

Thanks for all of your input on this… one more follow-up question to the one above.

I want the starter for winter months, but I like my Wrangler’s doors off in the summer. How difficult is it to take off the doors when the sensor (wire?) for the starter in place? Is this something I can do, or would I have to bring it into the shop?

Kelly, Thanks for finding our site. Unfortunately, we do not offer any installation assistance on the site. We simply are not staffed for this. If you are local to our store, you could bring the vehicle to us and we can provide you with an installation consultation. There is a reasonable fee that we charge for this service. I wish you luck with your project.

Hey Mitch, I know I’m three years late to the party, and maybe there have been some advancements since this post in remote starters. But, I have a 2010 Genesis Coupe that unfortunately operates in the winter. It has a push button start. You mention having to turn a key to have this method work, would turning off the ignition with the push button have the same effect, or no? If not, are there better options for my vehicle?

I just bought a used 2013 Jeep Wrangler. It is a manual transmission.It has a Clifford Responder LC3 570.4x alarm and remote start system. When I try to remote start the Jeep, I get a “remote start error” statement on the remote control. It says if I get this to refer to the online manual. There is not an online manual for this model on the Clifford website. I also followed the directions in your video about the reservation mode. Any suggestions?

The Clifford will likely work a lot differently than the Compustar remote car starters that we offer. I would definitely consult with an authorized Clifford dealer or contact the manufacturer. Since it is a manual transmission, you do not want to mess around with maybes or assumptions.

Kelvin, we are able to install a remote starter on your vehicle. Please stop in with it and let us have a look.. We can go over all of the options and at that point figure out what it is going to cost.

I had a remote starter installed on my manual transmission car. I have to ‘ready-start’ it each time, as expected, and how your describe it above. However, the clutch switch was disengaged to be off and was bypassed when the starter was installed. This means I can start my car- no clutch- while I’m in it, from both 1st gear (shoots forward) and from neutral. Is this normal?

Good question. Logic would dictate that, since you are remote starting mainly to warm up or cool down your vehicle, that your windows would likely be closed. For folks that do not want to leave anything to chance we offer a sensor that detects movement. If it does see movement, it immediately shuts down the vehicle.

THANKS MITCHELL I REALLY APPRECIATED FOR EXPLANATION THE REMOTE CAR STATER FOR MANUAL TRANSMISSION I HAD THAT PROBLEM FOR WHILE UNTIL WATCHED YOUR VIDEO HOW MANUAL TRANSMISSION CAR STARTER WORKS THANKS AGAIN

Hi Mitch thanks for explaining everything very well. I like how SAFETY is your #1 priority, I know it’s mine I live in Las Vegas, NV so I can’t go into your shop but, would you happen to know of anyone out here where I could go get my car starter installed my car is manual, someone like you guys? That will do a GOOD JOB. Thank you!!!

Jon was the Installer of the Year for the entire US a few years back and a good friend of mine. I’m not sure if they offer Manual Transmission installs, but that is where I would start my search in your market.. Tell Jon that Mitch Schaffer recommended that you go there… He will get a kick out of that!

Just bought a 2014 Nissan juke nismo 6 speed manual with a push start no ignition key just push start dealer tolt me auto start are not available for my car is it true or was he just bullshitting me cause he didn’t want to install it ? Or is it do able?

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Hi there. I installed an Omega Excalibur alarm on my 5 speed Honda Civic. Problem is everythings wired up great and works. Only problem im having is that when i start my car i push on the clutch and the starter engages. Not sure why but all my connections are good. Any ideas where the problem could be? Thanks!

[…] created a YouTube video to explain how to use a remote car starter on a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission. There is not a lot too it, but we have had a lot of emails and customer questions about how it […]